Little Dog Is A Big Draw

Homerun Holly Covers The Bases For The Peninsula Pilots

August 16, 2001|By JASON NORMAN Daily Press

After almost four decades of watching baseball at War Memorial Stadium, Rodney Gentry has more than his share of stories to tell.

"I remember when the nets behind home plate weren't there, and there were cinder block walls to protect the crowd from foul balls," recalls the 52-year-old Hampton resident. "I've seen balls fly over the catchers' heads and bounce straight back, just in time for them to catch it and tag the runners out at home.

"There was this other time when the crew used the wrong type of light bulbs to light the field, and it rained," he continues. "The rain caused all the light bulbs to short out and break, sending glass and players scattering everywhere! It was like the movie, 'The Natural.' "

In his first year as the announcer for the Peninsula Pilots, Gentry began the season hoping for even more surprises. At the beginning of the 2001 season, something brand new scampered across the field.

That something was Homerun Holly, a 2-year-old terrier. Called the fastest runner on the team by Gentry, the tiny canine is the only live mascot in the Coastal Plains League. The Pilots are a team of college baseball players who spent their summer trying to improve their skills and impress pro scouts.

The Pilots finished their season earlier this month, but they'll be back next spring, as will Homerun Holly.

"Holly knows that when she's on the field, she's got everyone's attention," Gentry says with a laugh. "I've even been thinking about bringing my black lab out here, and letting her run with Holly."

Before each game, the small dog raced around the bases, ending up at home plate in the arms of her trainer, Joe Tvelia.

"Back around Christmas of 1999, my German shepherd, Magic, and I were walking on Chesapeake Avenue, and Magic suddenly saw this little Terrier hiding under a holly bush," Tvelia remembers. That bush was the source of Holly's name.

Tvelia's family runs Coastal Dog Services, a home-based organization that specializes in teaching obedience and refresher classes to dog owners and their pets throughout the Peninsula.

"We tried to find her real owner," Joe says, "but when we couldn't, we decided to train her as a show dog."

That training paid off a few months later, when Pilot official Jason Matlock was seeking a new mascot for his team.

"The Pilots had been considering using a live mascot," Matlock says, "and we decided on a small dog, because they're easier to train. We needed something that would get our fans to walk away thinking, 'Hey, that was pretty neat.' "

After a small search through the Yellow Pages, Matlock happened upon Coastal Dog Services.

"Actually, we started off wanting to find a black lab to bring balls to the pitcher," Matlock said. "But after we saw how they'd taught Holly to run, we decided to use her instead."

Tvelia explained his organization's special training methods for their special "project."

"The baserunning wasn't that difficult; it just took a lot of taking Holly out on the fields and practicing her running. The hat- tearing part, though, owed a lot to her natural instincts."

That's the second part of Holly's regular

performance. Just before the first batter steps to the plate, she rips apart a hat bearing the logo of the opposing team.

"Look at Holly tearing up that hat!" Gentry cries to the fans over the loudspeaker. "That's what your Peninsula Pilots are going to do to their opponents tonight."

"Terriers are bred to hunt, find and kill mice, so they're sort of used to attacking things," Tvelia explains. "We trained her for this by shaking a rag in front of her to trigger her prey instinct. When you do that to a terrier, they learn fast to attack something being waved in front of them."

"I'd never seen anything like Holly in my life until I saw her," says pitcher Nathan Lyons. "We always talk to her and pet her when she's hanging around before the games."

Through the stands of the legendary stadium, fans new and old shared their thoughts on the Pilots' new find.

"I've been coming to War Memorial since there was a team here," says Todd Kercher of Newport News. "My dad brought me here when Johnny Bench played on this field, but I've never seen anything like Holly. I knew she was different, and I think that the kids enjoyed her the most. I guess she's something of a goodwill ambassador for the kids."

Like her human Pilots counterparts, Tveila said, he hopes Holly makes it to the big leagues someday. "We'd love to take her to the Major Leagues," Tveila said. "Can you imagine her running around the bases at the World Series?"